Scattered Leaves
by OdamaRasengan
Summary: Had he tarried a few seconds longer, this never would have happened...Naruto, clutching the forbidden scroll on that fateful day, never heard Iruka, and never saved him from Mizuki. Naruto leaves Konoha...everything is affected. Chapter 8 is up!
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: Well, welcome to my fanfic! Just to let you know, this is purely fan-made; I do not claim to own Naruto, blah blah blah...You should already know that. I've only spent a few days on this first chapter, but more are sure to come. Please leave some sort of a comment so I at least know that somebody is reading it. Compliments, questions, and comments are all appreciated, as well as suggestions.

BTW, there are a couple spoilers if you haven't read the manga recently, but nothing extreme since this is a 'What-if?' fanfic. You may not be familiar with characters such as Danzou, Yamato, or Sai. However, I try to put in a little information about them in the story so yo won't be completely lost...

Well, let's get started...

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"I'm not going to let an idiot like you get that scroll." Iruka muttered between shallow breaths as Mizuki advanced upon him, leering at the wounded ninja. As he sat against the tree trunk, Iruka could only look up at the cruel face and feel ashamed for failing…for failing both himself and Naruto.

"You're the idiot," Mizuki spoke, shaking his head at his former comrade's ridiculous statement. "Naruto is the same as me." At this, a look of confusion clouded Iruka's face.

"Same…as you?"

"Anything is possible with that scroll." Mizuki elaborated. "There's no way that Naruto, the monster fox, won't use its powers." Not far from there, Naruto was huddled over behind a tree. At the mention of the 'monster fox' he hugged the scroll to his chest.

It explained so much: the cold stares, the angry taunts…Growing up was Hell. There was no other word for it. A tear silently flowed down his cheek.

"Yeah, you're right…" Iruka replied. Naruto's eyes widened; it was all he could do not to break down and start crying.

"_I knew it…" _Naruto thought to himself, despair building inside him. _"Iruka-sensei doesn't recognize me…" _At that thought, Naruto got to his feet and held the scroll even tighter to his chest. Tensing his legs, he pushed off from the ground and landed on a low tree branch. His heart had been broken countless times over the years, and this just added to them. Attempts to make friends had been thwarted by their parents, always muttering bitterly as they stared at him with nothing but contempt.

Such cold eyes…

Naruto silently bounded away and became unable to hear the conversation that continued between Mizuki and Iruka.

"If he was a monster fox….But Naruto is different." Iruka managed a weak smile. "He's…He's an excellent student that I recognize. He's hardworking, earnest, clumsy, but nobody recognizes him." Mizuki's face began to twitch, reflecting his growing anger. "He knows the pain of others. He is not a monster fox…He is Uzumaki Naruto of Konoha!" Iruka nearly yelled the last part, and his eyes glared directly into Mizuki with pure determination.

Mizuki looked in surprise at Iruka's bold statement. He couldn't understand how Iruka could care for the same demon that slaughtered his parents. But he wasn't going to let that trouble him. With a sinister grin, he unhooked the second large shuriken from his back.

"What an idiot." Mizuki smirked as he felt the weight of the shuriken in his hand and gripped it tightly. "Iruka…I said I would kill you later, but I take that back." He began to spin the shuriken in his right hand, demonstrating his mastery over the weapon. As it picked up speed, it took on the appearance of a blurred circle. "Die!" Mizuki roared as began to race forward at the defenseless leaf ninja.

"_This must be the end…" _Iruka thought. And he was right.

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The Hokage sighed and pulled down the brow of his hat, his wrinkled features creasing even further with worry. He had such high hopes for the blonde-haired troublemaker. When he wasn't busy with dealing with village matters, he tried to keep an eye on the boy, offering a kind word of encouragement here and there. Once he heard the boy's aspiration for his title, needless to say, he was quite amused. The Third was always rooting for him, but now…

Such dreams were impossible. Waving his hand over the crystal ball, he erased the image of the fleeing Naruto and dying Iruka. Standing up, he took heavy steps over to the nearest window of his office. He knocked on it three times and within a few seconds, an ANBU member appeared beside him, fully dressed in uniform. As the Hokage looked into the eye-slits of the green feline-faced mask, he spoke in a gravely.

"Assemble two squadrons and have Uzuki Yuago lead them. Uzumaki Naruto is headed for the village's western border." He paused to take a deep breath. "He has the Scroll of the Forbidden Seals…but don't harm him. Bring him back to me..." Now came the hard part. "And…send a medical team to locate Umino Iruka's body. Take him back to the hospital." The ANBU gave a quick nod.

"Yes sir!" And in a puff of smoke, he was gone. The Hokage puffed from his pipe, the room already filled with slightly sweet scent.

The group of chuunin and jounin who were looking for Naruto had all assembled in front of the main building, muttering to each other about their lack of success. They all quieted as the door to the building opened and the Third Hokage stepped out. They eagerly waited for a reply, but he merely shook his head.

The group continued to wait in silence and after a few seconds of smoking from his pipe, the Third began to speak.

"ANBU will take the matter from here…you are all dismissed."

"ANBU should have been handling the matter from the start, Hokage-**sama**." A cold voice spoke from the back of the crowd, putting bitter emphasis on the title. The group of chuunin and jounin turned around in surprise, but the Hokage stood still, already knowing to whom the voice belonged to.

"The use of ANBU from the start would have been a bit drastic, Danzou-sama." Murmurs began to spring up in the crowd.

"Who's Danzou?" One voice asked in a low whisper.

"He's an old rival of the Hokage-sama." One of the older jounins in the crowd replied. "Apparently, he was considered for the position of Hokage, but was considered to be too obsessed with war. Nobody's really seen him since Root, the ANBU training department was shut down…" The crowd naturally parted to let the two seasoned warriors stare at each other. Danzou grunted at the Hokage's reply.

"Regardless, I took the liberty of sending an ANBU team after the scroll once I learned of the situation." The Hokage looked visible angry at this.

"You had no right. As ANBU, they are directly under **my** command." The Hokage matched Danzou's gaze with a look that would have made even the stoutest of ninja falter, but Danzou's scarred face was still calm and apathetic.

"When the village is in danger, it is the duty of a ninja to seek to protect it. I'm sure you agree with that fact, my old friend." Danzou gave a small wave with his hand and disappeared with a cold night breeze.

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Naruto continued his desperate escape from Konoha, getting closer and closer to the border by the second. Although he was unable hear Iruka's death at the hands of Mizuki once it occurred, something inside him seemed to know and gave off a pang of sorrow that resounded throughout his body like the toll of a bell. Not knowing what it was, Naruto began to weep.

"_Iruka-sensei is just like all of the others. He doesn't care…nobody cares…" _Tears began to build up faster than Naruto could blink them away. Soon, his entire vision was blurred by the salty solution, causing him to miss his jump to the next branch completely.

Naruto gave a gasp of surprise as he aimed too low and hit his head against the branch instead of landing on it. He fell to the forest floor with a soft thud.

The young pre-teenager winced at the pain in his forehead, and felt around to make sure his skull wasn't seriously damaged. Gingerly touching the area, he noted that only his green goggles were truly hurt. Slipping them off of his head, he threw them onto the grass beside him. Naruto stared at the ruined mass of plastic, remembering how he begged Iruka-sensei to let him try on his Konoha forehead protector.

"_I was so happy that night…" _Naruto thought sadly. Wiping away his tears, he began to check the scroll for damage. There was none.

His legs quivered as he tried to get to his feet. Leaving the shattered goggles where they fell, he was about to slip the scroll onto his back when the sound of somebody landing a few feet behind him made Naruto twitch with fear.

"Now, now…" Mizuki said menacingly. "Let's hand over that scroll, Kyuubi brat." Naruto whirled around and stared at the traitorous chuunin with wide eyes. He took a few tentative steps backwards, but could manage nothing more.

In Mizuki's hand, he still held his large shuriken, and although it was wiped after Iruka's death, there were still traces of blood on the blade edges. Naruto instantly knew what Mizuki had done.

"I really don't want to kill you while you still have the scroll, since your blood might make it hard to read, but…" Mizuki gave an evil smile. "I guess I have no choice." The shuriken began to pick up speed in Mizuki's hand once more. However, before he could get any farther than a few steps toward Naruto, he was suddenly knocked back, and a figure dressed in a black cloak and hood appeared between the Mizuki and the terrified Naruto.

Mizuki looked up at the shadowy figure in confusion for a fraction of a second before flashing off another smirk.

"You bastard…I may have been caught off guard, but now you don't stand a chance!" Mizuki threw the large shuriken at the stranger, but a hand extended out from the cloak and caught it before it could do any damage. In the same motion, the stranger threw the shuriken into a nearby tree trunk, the weapon sinking so deep into the wood that it would be near impossible to pull out by ordinary means.

Mizuki's temper only flared at this display. Drawing a kunai, he sprung to his feet and began to race for the cloaked man. But when the ninja was halfway there, he was immediately stopped when a second figure appeared beside him and placed a hand on his shoulder. Although such a movement wouldn't normally stop a figure sprinting at such a high velocity, Mizuki was forced to come to a dead halt. He looked in surprise at the figure who had stopped him, but couldn't see past the shadow that the hood cast upon his face. This second stranger was clad in a white robe, but one couldn't help but feel something evil was emanating from him.

"We really didn't need to interfere, you know." The second stranger, the one grabbing Mizuki, spoke to the first. At the sound of his voice, Naruto shivered and felt as if he couldn't breathe. He desperately tried to swallow.

"I thought it prudent that we think things through thoroughly when **he's** involved." The first one replied. It took Naruto a few seconds to realize that he was the one being referring to.

"Hmm?" The white hood turned to look and Naruto. Although Naruto couldn't see anything, he could feel two hungry eyes bore into him, possibly to his very soul. "Ah, yes. He is the Kyuubi child, isn't he?"

"Who…who are you?" Mizuki interrupted, stammering and appearing even more shaken than Naruto. The white robe gave a low chuckle and threw back his hood. Naruto couldn't see much in the dim light, but he could make out a pale face with inhuman yellow eyes. Mizuki gave a choking noise as he sank to the ground in fear.

"You…you are…" Mizuki tried to crawl away, but couldn't stop himself from staring at the sinister smile.

The first stranger interjected.

"Orochimaru."


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: Well, let me just say that I am very very very very very sorry for getting this up late. I usually do my writing on weekends, but on the last one I had a nasty cold. Thank you for your comments! For those of you who posted suggestions, I have taken all of them into consideration. Speaking of which, this chapter will hopefully have dividers that actually show up!

Well, enough rambling...if you ever have any questions on what's been going on in the story, go ahead and ask. I'm aware some of my descriptions can seem quite vague...

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The stranger in the dark cloak removed his hood after speaking. Naruto flinched, expecting something just as terrifying as Orochimaru. However, he was relatively normal: white hair tied up into a ponytail, round glasses…and a Konoha forehead protector.

"You? You're that Yakushi kid!" Mizuki roared. "B-But you're just a genin!" Mizuzki pointed an accusing finger at the white-haired teenager, apparently forgetting about the Legendary Sannin beside him.

"The name's Kabuto…And you're not the first one to be surprised at my rank." Kabuto smiled slightly and adjusted his glasses with his middle and index finger.

"Kabuto…I assume that by revealing yourself…" Orochimaru started to speak with a look of amusement upon his face. Kabuto nodded.

"It might be best. There's nothing we can really do with him." He glanced at Mizuki, who was staring back, wide-eyed with confusion. "And frankly, he's starting to annoy me."

The instant Kabuto stopped speaking, there was a sound of steel piercing flesh and a strangled gasp: the music of Mizuki's death. Naruto could only look on in horror as a venomous-looking snake poked its head out from Orochimaru's mouth. A long silver blade extended from its own mouth and pierced Mizuki through the heart, all of this taking place in an instant. The sword then retracted into the snake's mouth, and the snake slipped back down Orochimaru's throat: this happening just as quickly as the attack.

Mizuki looked dumbly down at the weeping hole in his chest and back at the leering Orochimaru. His mouth opened as if to say something, but he instead fell back onto the soft forest grass, dead.

"_The attack was so fast!" _Naruto was speechless. Mizuki, an experienced fighter, couldn't even react to the speed and efficiency of the technique. This man, if he could be called one, was a true ninja.

"Did you like that?" Orochimaru chuckled as he saw the look on Naruto's face. He then turned his gaze to his companion. "Kabuto…what information do you have on this boy?"

Naruto was still silent as Kabuto handed Orochimaru a small orange card. After glancing over its contents, he looked surprised.

"You have failed to graduate from the Academy several times, child. Are you sure this is the container of the Kyuubi, Kabuto?"

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama. Apparently, he has yet to unleash any of its power." At this, Orochimaru's look of surprised curiosity changed to one very familiar to Kabuto. His interest was piqued. He stepped towards Naruto.

"The villagers of Konoha don't understand you, do they? They fear the power inside you." Orochimaru knelt down so that he was eye-level with Naruto. "It was the same with me. Most people are foolish…" Naruto turned away from Orochimaru, but he said nothing. As he turned, Orochimaru got a clear view of the scroll. "Hmm? What's this?"

Kabuto's eyes widened.

"That's…the Scroll of Forbidden Seals!" Kabuto, in his surprise let his glasses slide down onto the tip of his nose. Orochimaru's eyes hinted his shock.

"You have brought me a gift, child?" Orochimaru reached for the scroll. Naruto, however, grabbed his wrist and gripped as tightly as he possibly could. Kabuto looked visibly perturbed and started to rush forward.

"Hey! If you do that, Orochimaru-sama will-" Orochimaru merely waved his hand at Kabuto, who then stopped and took a step back. Naruto began to cry silently again.

He didn't know why he couldn't let go of the scroll…he just couldn't. After everything that had just happened…

"Now, now…you must have been through a lot." Orochimaru did his best to put on a face of concern. Although the man's face was still terrifying to look at, Naruto couldn't help but feel some degree of comfort. He began to ignore what his instincts were telling him. After, all, Orochimaru had saved his life…

As Naruto slowly relinquished Orochimaru's wrist, the man smiled. He gently took the scroll, his eyes scanning the outside hungrily.

Orochimaru rubbed his thumb over the old parchment. "I thought I would have to wait until that old fool's death to get this…"

"It might be best if we conclude our business now, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto regained his composure and pushed his glass back onto the bridge of his nose. He took out a small vial of medicine from his pocket. "If I'm gone any longer, people might become suspicious. Give this to Kimimaro; I should be able to see him myself in a few days."

Orochimaru took the vial from Kabuto and gave a wide smile.

"Your help has been greatly appreciated, Kabuto. I am sure Kimimaro is very grateful." The medic ninja merely nodded as his reply. Kabuto gave a small half-wave and nonchalantly bounded onto a branch and into the night.

"We can't have his loyalties revealed just yet." Orochimaru explained, winking at Naruto. "But enough of him….Let's have a look at this scroll…" Orochimaru licked his lips with an abnormally long tongue. He began to reveal the forbidden words…

The ANBU member didn't even make a noise as the Kusanagi sword pierced and impaled his throat. The kunai in his hand dropped and made a quiet tinkling noise as it bounced on the forest floor. Naruto gave a surprised yell and fell back onto the grass. This strike had been much quicker than the one on Mizuki. Orochimaru had instantly shifted from standing still and looking at the scroll, to completely turned around with the deadly sword in hand. However, the same snake from before was hissing quietly from Orochimaru's mouth, seeming to relish the death before it.

With a flick of his wrist, Orochimaru tore threw the rest of the ANBU's neck, allowing it to fall. He placed the sword back into the snake's mouth and petted its scaly head before swallowing it

"It seems I have been discovered." He spoke with amusement. Suddenly, he started to form quick hand seals. Although there were quite a few, it was all done in a split-second "**_Fuuton: Daitoppa! _**(Wind Release: Great Breakthrough)"

A quick explosion of wind came from Orochimaru's body, blowing away an array of shuriken that appeared an instant before his attack came. The attack also served to knock the two ANBU members that threw the projectiles from their perch in the nearby tree branches. Before they could recover from their fall, Orochimaru disappeared and reappeared in between them. His arms extended out as if they were made of rubber and caught each one by neck. As they gasped for breath, one tried to form a sequence of hand seals, but Orochimaru promptly crushed the throat of each one.

"Konoha ANBU are so disappointing." Orochimaru muttered and let their bodies drop like broken dolls.

"Did you…kill them all?" Naruto asked nervously.

"Hm?" Orochimaru turned to Naruto. "No, ANBU platoons travel in groups of four. I was able to kill these three so easily because their ambush ultimately failed. The fourth one won't nearly be so reckless. Which makes me think…"

Without warning, the fourth ANBU appeared in front of Naruto and made a quick reach for the Forbidden Scroll. However, Orochimaru was just as quick, if not quicker. Appearing in the small space between the ANBU and the scroll he stabbed a kunai into a vital point in the chest. However, black liquid oozed from the wound instead of blood.

"…Ink?" Orochimaru asked as the ANBU member exploded and formed a large puddle of the liquid on the ground. "So it was a replication…" The man nodded as he finally understood.

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Sai calmly went over the situation in his mind. He was initially supposed to be back up for the other three ANBU, but the sequence of events caused him to decide that revealing himself to help them would only result in his death along with his comrades. So, he just let them die.

Besides, his real objective was the scroll. Protection at all costs…

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Orochimaru wiped some of the ink off his cloak. In the dim light of the night, it was hard to tell what was ink and what was blood. Turning to face Naruto, he gave him a reassuring smile.

"Do not worry, child. In fact…" He suddenly held out his arm and there came a splash of blood. Sai's sword, which was aimed for Orochimaru's neck, had been stopped: the blade merely impaled Orochimaru's outstretched hand and would not budge any further. The raven-haired Sannin leered and closed his fingers around the blade, despite the large amount of blood that was beginning to drip from the wound.

Sai's face, however, was completely calm and emotionless. In fact, he had been expecting this.

A loud roar echoed through the forest, but sounded the loudest from behind Orochimaru. The man whirled his head around, but a black paw struck him across the face, although his legs still held firm. Three large gashes appeared on Orochimaru's right cheek and began to bleed.

A rather large black bear panted heavily as it stared at Orochimaru hungrily. Naruto, who had fled behind the nearest tree when Orochimaru's hand had been impaled, looked at the creature. Even he could tell that there was something seriously wrong about this animal. It was…

"The creature is well drawn," Orochimaru observed and tore the sword from Sai's grip with a quick motion. Pulling the blade from his scarlet-stained palm, he slashed at the animal's midsection, the animal growling as it became an explosion of ink. But while he was wielding the sword with one hand, the other pointed at Sai's face. "**_Sen'eijashu! _**(Hidden Shadow Snake Hand)"

About half a dozen brown serpents shot out from Orochimaru's sleeve, two of them targeting Sai's neck while the others quickly bound his limbs. Sai gave a small jerk as the fags sunk into his neck. Blood flowed in small rivulets onto his chest.

"It appears this one is not a replication." Orochimaru observed with a pleased smile. Sai did not reply, but began to quiver as the poison began to numb his body. But there was still time for one last move…

A small pen fell down from up Sai's sleeve, which he caught in his quivering hand. Thrusting it in his pant pocket, he scribbled onto a waiting piece of paper. His skilled hands drew three small animals within a few seconds, but then his hand began to freeze up. That was enough. Concentrating all his strength, Sai's hands flung together, despite the poison and binding snakes.

"**_Chouju Giga!_** (Super Beasts Imitation Picture)" Sai shouted weakly as his fingers fumbled with the appropriate hand seal. Three elegantly drawn tigers burst forth from his pocket and began to fly towards Orochimaru.

"Your skills as an artist amaze me, dear child." Orochimaru had merely watched Sai as he was using the technique, his curiosity superseding worries of what the attack would do. But as the tigers flew in mid-air, he held up the hand holding Sai's sword.

_Swoosh!_

The first effortless swing caught the first tiger in the stomach, forcing the rest of the body to lose its form.

_Swoosh!_

On the backswing, Orochimaru caught the neck of the second tiger, ink raining heavily on the already soaked blades of grass.

But the third tiger passed over Orochimaru's head as the first two met their destruction. Orochimaru's eyes followed it as his slower body moved to intercept. It couldn't have been heading for Naruto's cowering form at the nearest tree; the tiger would end up short.

The scroll! Orochimaru's eyes widened in fury as he realized the creature's course. As soon as he realized this, Sai's hands held onto the snakes, making it impossible for Orochimaru to call them back into his sleeve. Unable to go himself, Orochimaru flung the sword as he would any other kunai. The blade cleanly sliced off the tiger's outstretched arm, but the arm still remained mostly intact as it flew through the air. Orochimaru's yellow eyes watched desperately as the arm began to melt into plain ink, starting at where the arm met the shoulder and moving down to the claws.

But, the instant before the whole arm disintegrated, the paw reached the scroll. Perhaps still under the will of the original creature, the claws raked the scroll's ancient parchment. Besides making four deep lacerations that almost tore their way through, the scroll became drenched with ink, making it utterly impossible to read.

"No!" Orochimaru cried. The serpents latched onto Sai releaed another does of paralyzing venom into his bloodstream. This time, it was enough, and after a few seconds, the serpents were broken from Sai's grip and pulled back into the sleeve. The white-cloaked Sannin sprinted to kneel at the ruined document. Sai merely crumpled to the ground, paralyzed by the venom's effect. Naruto moved from the tree and looked at the dying Sai.

"_He's about my age…_" As Naruto stared, Sai's head moved slightly and his eyes locked with Naruto's. The blonde-haired boy gave a quick gasp. In Sai's eyes he saw nothing: no fear, anger, or sadness. In fact, they were practically dead. "_Is this…is this a true ninja as well?_"

"Naruto." Orochimaru's voice called out to the boy and drew him away from Sai. He placed a hand on Naruto's shoulder. "It is best if we go now." He motioned to the scroll. "The techniques within the scroll may be lost to me for now, but meeting you more than makes up for it." Orochimaru smiled warmly, although falsely, but Naruto wasn't aware of the deception. Instead, at those words, more tears began to drip down Naruto's face. His hand found and grasped the loose bloodstained side of Orochimaru's cloak, for he had nothing else.

Orochimaru looked at the boy, but could only think of the terrible powers inside of him.

"_It is only fitting that I should have the power of the mightiest of the bijuu._" Orochimaru licked his lips. "_The Kyuubi is mine to command…_" But then Orochimaru's keen ears picked up a distant sound. He closed his eyes and sensed the presence of eight rapidly approaching figures. Eight ANBU would be troublesome, and besides, there was no reason for him to stay any longer.

"Naruto…" Orochimaru began and Naruto looked up, wiping his eyes. "We need to go now. I have a place where you can live." Naruto sniffed.

"Live…with you?" Orochimaru patted Naruto on the head.

"Of course." The hand moved from Naruto's head to his neck. Pressing on a basic pressure point, Orochimaru knocked him out. "Sleep, child. When you awaken, your new life begins…" Grabbing the unconscious boy around the stomach, he held Naruto firmly to his side with one arm. And so, Naruto left behind Konoha and a life that could have been.


	3. Chapter 3

Author's Note: Well now! Here's chapter three! You may not find it as exciting since there isn't a fight scene in this chapter, but I hope you enjoy it nonetheless.

Also, I have a second story here on titled Fury of Heaven. It takes place five years before the start of the series and involves Hatake Kakashi during his ANBU days. Check it out, and don't forget to review my work!

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Uzuki Yugao simply stared at the corpse on the ground without saying a word. She knelt down, and examined the wound: a clean slit in the throat followed by a larger, messier hole on the back.

Her night was just going badly: first, she had to cancel her dinner date with Hayate, and now she had to process the deaths of four ANBU members and a chuunin named Mizuki. But then again, that was what she signed up for when she accepted the position in ANBU.

Tearing her gaze from the dead, she motioned to the second platoon under her command.

"Take these five dead back to the village, as well as what's left of the scroll." When the team had arrived, they were shocked by the scene of devastation. Judging by what had been done to the scroll, the team leader, Sai had been responsible. But what could have driven him to such a desperate course?

It was a fearsome possibility that Naruto had unlocked the power of the Kyuubi, but the wounds seemed too clean to have been done by the murderous demon. It didn't matter. The ANBU Department of Crime Investigation would handle it. Yugao signaled to her own platoon.

"We're going after whomever did this." There came a swift nod as a reply, and then the four were off. It was more than likely that the 'thing' responsible for this was long gone, so Yugao let her mind wander.

She thought back to the orders she had been given. Upon further reflection, it sounded as if the Hokage wished for the return of Naruto while the scroll was a secondary goal. But Yugao merely shrugged this off, for the Hokage's opinions about the Kyuubi kid were his own business. But personally, Yugao felt that she could sleep easier knowing a monster left the village.

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Yozora Hoshi brushed a rogue strand of ebony-black hair out of her face and reflected. A few hours ago, she had been informed about the death of Iruka, and the betrayal of her other colleague, Mizuki. Hoshi chose a position as a Ninja Academy Teacher because such dark matters slightly unsettled her, but apparently she wasn't safe anywhere. She drank deeply from her cup of tea, ignoring the very bitter taste.

The job of emptying out Iruka's desk fell upon her, since she worked with the man the most. Normally, it would have been given to his best friend, but sadly, that most likely would have been Mizuki.

Hoshi quickly found she hated the task. She loathed picking over the pieces, the dregs of a dead man's life. It was nothing against Iruka; it was just a sobering experience.

Class for the lower grades had been cancelled for a few days, a result of last night's unfortunate business. So, Hoshi was completely alone in the classroom, trying not to become too depressed about the several pictures of a smiling Iruka and friends that were found in his desk

As a secondary task, Hoshi was told to go over the team lists for the Academy graduates who would be given the chance to become genin. Deciding to take a break from the depressing work, she decided to take a look at the lists.

Glancing back and forth between the team rosters and the members' respective grades, Hoshi found that the teams were well-balanced and well-chosen. However, when she came to Team 7, she was so surprised that she forgot to swallow her mouthful of tea in and nearly spat it out when the bitter taste was allowed to remain for too long.

Along with the names Haruno Sakura and Uchiha Sasuke was the unbelievable: Uzumaki Naruto.

Searching back into the grading scrolls to confirm her thoughts, Hoshi became confused. Naruto had clearly failed his graduation exam, and yet…

The woman sat back in her seat and thought. Come to think of it, Iruka was working late in the teacher's office on the night he died, right before he was called to search for Naruto and the scroll. According to a few of the other teachers, he was making revisions to the graduate list.

"He…he planned to pass Naruto?" Hoshi was shocked. If she understood the rumors correctly, Naruto's defection involved his failure to graduate. If he found out that Iruka chose to pass him after all, everything could have been averted…

But that didn't change the fact that the list needed to be revised again. Since Naruto's removal from the list upset the multiple-of-three rule, two of the lowest-scoring graduates had to be pulled. Then, she had to rearrange some of the team members, but she managed to keep most of them intact. Teams 8 and 10, for example, were still ideal. However, Team 7 still needed a final member….

Upon seeing that the team's ninja technique aptitude was a bit low, Hoshi decided on a final ninja, a male ninja by the name of Mandou Obon.

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Naruto awoke on what seemed to be a hospital bed in a bleak, sterile looking room. It was dimly lit: the only source of light came from a flickering overhead that seemed too weak to penetrate the thick shadows that inhabited the corners of the room. There was a small metal table next to the wall: the only piece of furniture in the room besides the bed. A set of nasty-looking surgical tools sat on the table, causing Naruto to nervously check his body for fresh cuts, but there were none.

The boy stepped out of bed and shivered as his bare feet touched the cold floor. Naruto was in his underwear: his black undershirt and green boxers. He began to look around for his clothes, but they didn't appear to be in the room.

However, near the door, there were a neatly folded set of clothes and brown open-toed shoes waiting for him. He put them on. The clothes included a large, loose tan shirt that hung low, covering the top of the black pants that came with it. Also included was an odd sort of violet rope-belt that formed a pretzel-like knot at the back when tied correctly. It was mainly intended to keep the long tan shirt from billowing out.

Naruto then slipped on the shoes and found them to be a perfect fit. Opening the door, he stepped out into a nearly pitch-black hallway. However, there was a faint crack of light glowing from a partially open door not too far from Naruto's room. He headed toward the door and tentatively pushed it open.

It was similar to his own room, but there was a lot more medical equipment around, all of which were hooked up to the figure lying motionless on the bed.

Naruto stepped closer to get a better look: the middle torso down was covered by a blanket, the upper part of the face was covered by a piece of paper with an intricately drawn seal inscribed on it, and wires and tubes connected to dozens of spots on his body.

He was about to step back out of the room when the figure spoke. The voice was cold, chilled from experiencing years of nothingness and torment.

"Are you the one that Orochimaru-sama brought in last night?" The exposed mouth of the body moved, but nothing else did.

"Y-yeah…" Naruto stammered and could say no more. There was a slight pause.

"Orochimaru-sama has selected you because you can help him achieve his dream. We serve him, die for him." At the word 'die', Naruto gave a small shudder. He was beginning to wonder if this person was even human. "Are you completely loyal to Orochimaru-sama? Would you die if it meant that he would be a step closer in his glorious goal?"

Naruto didn't know what to say. He opened his mouth to speak, but then closed it. He opened it a second time, but no words would escape his lips. Naruto closed his eyes and thought back to the previous night.

The first kind words…Orochimaru had saved him…he gave him a home…Naruto had nowhere else to go.

"Yeah." Naruto's stomach lurched as he said this, but he didn't know why. "I am loyal."

"That is good." The figure replied, a slightly pleased tone mixing in with the usual coldness. "If you had said no, I would have been forced to kill you." There was a sharp noise and Naruto's eyes just barely caught something white retract back into the stranger's palm.

"Ah, Kimimaro." Orochimaru stepped into the room, smiling. "There is no need to be so serious. But I am glad that the two of you had the chance to meet. Do you feel pain, Kimimaro?"

"I do not feel pain while I serve you, Orochimaru-sama." Kimimaro replied in a level voice.

"Ah, yes, but is Kabuto's medicine working?"

"It is working, Orochimaru-sama. Please tell Kabuto-san that I am grateful." Orochimaru nodded.

"I shall. Come Naruto; let us leave Kimimaro to rest. Perhaps your training can begin today…" Naruto took one last look at Kimimaro. He was still motionless; his facial features betrayed nothing. Instantly, Naruto's memory shifted back to the forest of last night. Sai's face, completely devoid of feeling even up to his death, was burned into his mind. A true ninja.

Naruto followed Orochimaru out into the hallway of shadows.

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Author's Note: I know it was a bit short, but I felt the upcoming scene couldn't effectively be broken into parts. As you can tell, I introduced two new characters:

Yozora Hoshi: A chuunin teacher at the Ninja Academy who is sometimes plagued by slight bouts of depression. 'Yozora' means 'Night sky' and 'Hoshi' means 'Star'. I'm not sure whether I'll have her make an appearance in later chapters.

Mandou Obon: He's an Academy graduate, but I won't tell you any more about him yet. Telling you the meaning of his name might spoil it, so you'll have to wait until he makes a formal appearance.

Also, you may have noticed in the story that Iruka passed Naruto after all, before his mission. This isn't stated in the manga or anime and therefore is considered to not be true. However, I felt that it added to the tragedy of the scene. Don't hate me!


	4. Chapter 4

Author's Note: Well, it's a tad late, but at least I got around to writing it. School is just getting more and more demanding…

Well, I have not much else to say, except…Review please! I love reading them!

Oooh, and speaking of reviews, would you guys prefer that I reply to each one? I don't know how other authors do it, but I just usually reply to suggestions and questions. Ask me to reply if you want me to.

Thanks!

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It was dark; Naruto shivered. As they walked, there were open shadowy doorways that seemed to yawn, eager to draw the boy in and swallow him. At these moments, Naruto would step closer to Orochimaru's walking body. Some of the doors made noises, mostly distant cries of anguish, despair, and anger.

"Is this Hell?" Naruto asked himself. He stopped by an open doorway and tried to peer in. Orochimaru, sensing Naruto's fear, acted quickly. If the boy became too afraid, then there would be complications, for the first few days were when Naruto could be shaped, molded. He stopped and stood next to Naruto. He touched him lightly on the shoulder.

"Come, Naruto. It is a tad unpleasant here, but it is because of circumstance. We both have been shunned from the place of our birth by those frightened by our potential." Naruto looked up at him. "We have found each other, and we shall become strong together." Orochimaru gently took Naruto's hand and led him away from the door. To Naruto, the hand may have felt cold and lifeless, but it gave a slight bit of warmth as well. Naruto relished the warmth.

They walked into a lit room, the first one they had seen since Kimimaro's room. However, this room was different, with many tables and benches. It appeared to be a cafeteria. Naruto sat down on a hard metal bench while Orochimaru placed himself across the table from him.

Orochimaru held his right hand up, signaling over an old woman whose head hung low. She placed a plate of rice and dried fish in front of Naruto before bowing and scurrying away. Naruto broke apart a pair of chopsticks and looked at the food. It wasn't ramen, his favorite food, but he was ravenous. Little flecks of rice flew as he nearly literally dove into his food. Orochimaru smiled.

"My, what a healthy appetite…" Whenever Naruto finished one plate, another was promptly brought to him. After nearly a dozen plates had been polished off and stacked, the old woman came for a final time and carried them away.

"Gotzusosama…" Naruto wiped his mouth and burped with a satisfied look on his face. Orochimaru grinned and took something out from his pocket. It caught the dim light and glittered.

"The Konoha Ninja Academy might not have recognized your potential, but I do." It was a forehead protector, but the symbol on it was not the familiar spiral leaf, but an eighth note. Orochimaru pushed it across the table; Naruto stared down at it.

His mind jumped back to Iruka and the scene with his forehead protector at Ichiraku Ramen. Naruto couldn't pry his eyes away from the foreign symbol. Wearing it would label him as a ninja, but he had spent so much time dreaming about the leaf swirl. He began to push the neatly folded item back to Orochimaru.

"I'm sorry, Orochimaru-sama, b-but…" Orochimaru cursed himself for moving too quickly. He pulled the forehead protector back and smiled at Naruto.

"It is fine, my child." He removed the item from the table. "But, remember that it is always yours, should you want it." Orochimaru desperately tried to change the subject. "Why don't we get started on your training?

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Raindrops splattered heavily against the windowpane as the Third Hokage looked over the large city. On his desk, there were the ruined ink-covered remains of the Forbidden Scroll. He had gone over every inch of the document, but it was absolutely illegible. He knew most of the techniques by heart, but it would take a long time to remember and write. It would especially be so, since the techniques in the scroll were written by the individual Hokages over the course of their respective lives. He'd have to cover four lifetimes of techniques.

But that wasn't what was troubling him. The medic-nins who were examining the dead bodies came back with a disturbing report. Sai, the team leader had several bite marks on his body along with large amounts of venom in his veins. It had been identified as snake venom.

"Could it be you, my pupil?" The Third massaged the bridge of his nose with his index and middle finger. It had been many years since he last saw his former student, but he still hoped for many more years before their next encounter. There had been rumors brought back by ANBU about Orochimaru, but nothing was ever definite.

Mitokado Himura and Utatane Koharu, the village elders, had been told, but the Third's suspicions weren't divulged to the public just yet. However, village security was at an all-time high. A reason was never given, but the village people and the guard ninjas themselves assumed it was because of Naruto's defection and possibility of his coming back as the Kyuubi.

But the Third wasn't worried about Naruto, just worried _for _him. If Orochimaru had indeed taken him in, then there would be no telling just what would happen. Naruto was in grave danger, and the Third was powerless to help him.

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"I have to do _what_?" Naruto nearly shouted out in disbelief at the task he was given. The training room was a large arena, but there was a white line drawn on the ground and a large block of wood a few feet from it. Orochimaru brushed hair out of his face and nodded.

"That block of wood is three feet thick." He took out a scroll and pressed his hand onto one of the symbols. A dozen or so packs filled with kunai appeared and dropped to the ground. "Using these kunai, you will stand behind the white line and throw the kunai at the block until they break through to the other side." He handed a kunai to Naruto and motioned to the waiting cube.

Naruto moved his arm back, and with a swift flick of the wrist, he weapon whistled as it soared through the air. The kunai made an echoing thud in the empty arena as it impacted the hunk of wood. The tip stuck while the weapon's body remained perfectly horizontal to the ground. Orochimaru lifted his arm; it extended out to inhuman lengths and pulled the kunai from the wood. There was a slight indentation in the block, but it only measured about half an inch into the target. Naruto quickly followed with another throw, but this kunai struck another spot on the block a few inches away. He looked to Orochimaru, his face beginning to turn red with anger and frustration.

"How can I do this if I keep missing?!" Orochimaru merely shrugged.

"Just improve your aim, Naruto-kun." He turned as if to leave. Naruto opened his mouth in protest, but Orochimaru casually lifted up his hand. "I have matters to attend to right now, my child. Raiu will attend to you in my absence."

There was a slight breeze followed by the crackling sound of electricity. A figure, dressed similarly to Naruto, appeared next to him. The ninja, appearing to be a few years older than Naruto, had long back hair of the same length all the way around. Quite a few locks covered his face and made the blonde wonder how this teenager could possibly see clearly.

"I will watch over him for now, Orochimaru-sama." A voice, reminding Naruto of dead, moving leaves spoke out from underneath the shadow-colored strands. Naruto looked at the ninja with increasing curiosity. The head moved and matched his gaze. In startling contrast to the dead voice and dark hair were sparkling blue eyes, lively to the point that they were stunning.

"Thank you, Raiu-kun." Orochimaru turned his head slightly so that he could see Naruto in his peripheral vision. "Do your best Naruto. I know you will not fail me." Naruto picked up another kunai and clenched it tight in his palm, his knuckles turning white. The blonde nodded swiftly and prepared to throw the weapon once more.

Orochimaru's footsteps were silent as he began to exit the arena. At the sound of another kunai striking the wooden block, he gave a slight chuckle.

"_If this boy is to be of any use to me, he will need to invoke the power of the Kyuubi._" Orochimaru licked his lips. "_This task…Naruto cannot complete this task without **it's** power. He will become frustrated, angry, and then…_"

His laughter echoed in the empty hallway as he walked.

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Naruto groaned: he was four hours into the exercise and making little progress. His problems with accuracy were starting to solve themselves with practice, but he only made about half a foot of progress into the hard wood. Plus, the kunai were becoming woefully dull.

"You don't have time to rest." Raiu reminded Naruto. "There's still a long way to go, and the wood only becomes harder in the middle." The teenager had stood completely still and motionless during the entire task. In fact, it was the first time he had spoken since Orochimaru had been there.

"I know!" Naruto shouted back. He kicked the ground and spat. "Damn it!"

There came a tinkling noise in Raiu's direction. Naruto turned his head in time to see eight kunai land at his feet. Raiu gestured to the fresh weapons.

"Take them." Raiu turned away, apparently feeling uncomfortable and embarrassed at the deed. Naruto smiled his thanks and nodded.

"Yeah. Right." He picked up one of the new kunai and threw it.

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It was nearing nightfall and the end of Naruto's first day in Otogakure. Orochimaru was done with his rounds: checking on the prisoners, examining the test subjects, etc. He had just injected the final test subject with an experimental virus when Raiu's dull voice called out over the room's intercom.

"Naruto has finished the exercise, Orochimaru-sama." Orochimaru began to smile. He walked over to the section of wall under the speaker and held down a button.

"Is he in the Kyuubi state right now? I'm on my way." Orochimaru headed for the door, but Raiu's reply stopped him.

"No, Orochimaru-sama…" Raiu's voice paused, unsure on how to continue. "He completed the exercise, but he did not use…the Kyuubi's power." Orochimaru was silent. "He is an interesting boy. His resolve and ability to learn quickly is amazing. I-"

"I don't care about that." Orochimaru's voice was soft, his words deliberate. "I don't want the boy, I want the beast inside." His voice level rose as his last few words burned with fury. Nearly screaming the final word, he slammed his fist down on a nearby table, causing the legs to snap and the vials of liquid on top of it to shatter and spill.

He took a deep breath.

"Get the boy some food and take him to his room. We'll let him rest tomorrow…" Orochimaru paused and allowed himself to smile. "But the day after that, we'll do what we should have down in the first place. We will use the Sound Four."

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Author's Note: Yeah, I'm aware that it's another slow, character development chapter. But don't worry, the next one will have some action.

I have a new character made up, as you know. He was really more of a spur-of-the-moment character, but I'm pretty satisfied with him. His full name is Suitai Raiu, and the meaning of his name will be given once you see him in action, like with Mandou Obon. But, I'm pretty sure you can guess what his general techniques are like.

Well, thanks for reading! Review now! Heh heh…


	5. Chapter 5

Author's Note: I'm incredibly sorry for taking so long. Computer problems coupled with writer's block really took its toll. I'm also apologizing in advance for making this chapter a bit short, but I was desperate to put something up.

Well, remember, reviews are loved.

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Naruto panted heavily, but couldn't stop smiling He was bent over with his hands on his knees, his back arching with each gasp.

Finally catching his breath, Naruto stood up straight. He looked at his conquest: a block of wood with half of the mass it started with, but most importantly, a crude and small tunnel that revealed the delicious site of floor tiles on the other side.

"Very nice, Naruto-kun." Raiu murmured in his usual dead voice. "I will inform Orochimaru-sama of your success." Lifting his right hand, Raiu kept it directly in front of his sternum while he held up the middle and index finger – one half of the tiger hand seal. A slight wind blew while Raiu's hand lit up with soft cerulean sparks of electricity. He promptly disappeared.

But Naruto was a little distracted. Staring at the pitted block, he felt another wave of adrenaline sweep over him. Raising both of his arms in the air, he let out a hoarse, but roaring yell that the arena was forced to echo.

However, he immediately winced after this motion, for his throwing arm was fatigued and sore. Rubbing his shoulder gingerly, he put his arms down, but kept the satisfied grin.

After a few minutes, Raiu returned in the same manner he had left. Naruto looked at him expectantly.

"Was Orochimaru-sama proud of me?" Naruto asked, his eyes wide. Raiu's head moved to match Naruto's gaze. The movement caused one lock of face-obscuring hair to be moved, even though it was for less than a second. In that brief shard of time, Naruto caught a second glimpse of Raiu's brilliant blue eyes. However, the unworldly color seemed to be partially clouded, dimmed. Although Naruto only got the briefest of glimpses, it still curbed his enthusiasm. His grin faded.

"Orochimaru-sama sends his sincerest congratulations, but regrets that he could not be here himself. Pressing matters call his attention." Raiu motioned to Naruto. "Come, Naruto-kun. You should get some rest. You will be given another training exercise soon…"

Naruto nodded and managed a weak smile. It made sense; Orochimaru _was_ a village leader. It was only natural that he had matters to attend to.

"Yeah." Naruto started to walk to the door. "Thank you, Raiu-senpai."

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What had started out as an argument between Sakura and Ino had now managed to suck in every female in the room, save for Hinata, who merely watched the scene silently.

They were arguing about Sasuke, as usual. There was an empty seat next to him, and it appeared as if things would get physical about who would occupy the spot. Also as usual, Sasuke sat there, apathetic and seemingly oblivious about the racket.

Hinata never understood what the other girls saw in the pre-teen. He was cold, silent, and actually rude on occasion. The pale-eyed girl preferred the emotionally warm Naruto instead. But that no longer mattered. It had been three days since Naruto left the village and there hadn't been any word of him.

For years, Hinata had admired the blonde-haired troublemaker from afar. He was everything she wanted to be: strong, confident, and full of laughter and life. But he was now gone, and she couldn't have felt more empty.

During the last couple days, she would walk through the streets and hear blurbs of conversation from the village people. Too often, she would hear how 'Kyuubi Brat' was always no-good and how they probably should have killed him or locked him up long ago. Hinata wanted to just yell back at them, tell them how Naruto was a good person, but she was too quiet, too timid.

Hinata looked away from the kunoichi brawl taking place below her in the classroom and stared at the wood of her desk

"_Naruto-kun…Wherever you are, be careful. Just…take care of yourself._" A wet circle appeared on the desk as a tear fell from Hinata's eye. She quickly wiped her face with her sleeve and looked around. Good. Nobody had seen her crying.

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Naruto awoke and stretched. Rubbing the last fragments of sleep from his eyes, he sat up in his bed. As his vision began to clear, he yawned and looked around at the empty room.

"How long have I been asleep?" Naruto muttered. "I feel like it's been for days." His mind instantly jumped back to the tea Raiu had given him before he went to sleep. "He must have drugged me…" While that was actually true, Naruto had only slept for a full day and into the morning of the second. In fact, at that moment, far away, Hinata was watching the fight between Ino, Sakura, and all the other female graduates.

Throwing the sheets off his body, he rose from the bed and put on his clothes. As he was slipping on his shirt, he noted that his muscles weren't sore at all, which was unusual considering the rigorous workout he had recently completed. Naruto reasoned that it must've been the effects of the drugged tea.

"Good morning, Naruto-kun." A voice called from the doorway and Naruto turned. Kabuto gave a half-wave with his left hand and adjusted his glasses with the other.

"Hey, Kabuto-san." Naruto smiled. He had met the teenager only briefly before, but a familiar, friendly face was always a nice thing to see. "Why are you here?"

"I completed a mission for Konoha early so I could stop by here." Kabuto shrugged. "I needed to check up on Kimimaro. But right now, Orochimaru-sama has instructed me to have you wait in the arena for him." He took a step back and motioned to the door. Naruto nodded and grinned. Finally, he would be able to see Orochimaru.

The pair walked to the arena without much conversation. When they got there, Naruto was left standing in the middle of the arena while Kabuto began to walk away.

"I'll go tell Orochimaru-sama that you are awake. Just wait here for a bit okay?" Naruto nodded. As Kabuto left, he smiled.

"_I wonder if he'll survive this test…_"

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Orochimaru and Raiu were already waiting for Kabuto in a dimly lit room, the only light emanating from the viewing screens that showed Naruto standing alone from different angles in the arena. Orochimaru was watching the screen eagerly, but Raiu was nonchalantly leaned against the wall, his arms folded.

"There is a chance he could die, Orochimaru-sama." Raiu spoke without moving. "All four might be too much for him to handle." Kabuto stared intently at Orochimaru's face as he took his place beside him

"I am tired of waiting. No more vacillations, no more simple tests…" Orochimaru turned his head slightly so that one of his slitted yellow eyes looked at Raiu. "You're not growing soft on me, are you, Raiu-kun?" Raiu stiffened.

"Of course not, Orochimaru-sama."

"Good." Orochimaru turned back to Kabuto. "Have you given them my instructions?"

"Yes, Orochimaru-sama." Kabuto nodded. "No kunai, shuriken, or other ordinary weapons. Naruto will not be cut up – at least not in any conventional way." He gave a small chuckle. "I've also told them to try and keep him alive as long as possible, but knowing them, they'll eventually kill him."

"I would prefer him alive, but I have no problem if he dies." Orochimaru replied. "If he can't use the Kyuubi's power, what good is he?"

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"I wonder where Orochimaru-sama is…" Naruto looked around at the empty arena and sighed. It had been ten minutes, and there was no sign of anybody. He was alone…or so he thought.

There was a balcony in the arena that jutted out from one of the walls, with a fence railing and open doorway. Four figures watched Naruto from the shadows, effectively masking their presence.

"He looks pretty damn weak to me." A pink-haired girl spoke first. One of the others, who had six arms gave a disappointed grunt.

"Yeah, he doesn't look like much fun. I have no idea why Orochimaru-sama wants him around."

"Then maybe we should just kill him." A silver-haired teenager spoke quietly, eyeing Naruto hungrily. "He looks like the kind to scream when he bleeds."

"But we were told to keep him alive." The fourth one, heavyset with a nearly shaved head, grumbled in a deep voice.

"Shut up, fatass." The pink-haired one slapped him on the arm. "If you don't want to do this, then go away and stuff your face or something. Shithead..."

"Girls shouldn't use such language." Her teammate spoke back, looking at her with a disapproving stare. "Besides, we're teammates."

"Shut up, fatty." The silver-haired one turned around to look at the quarreling pair. "I'll tell you what: we'll each have our fun with him, and when we're done, you feed until he's dead. Okay?" Slowly, and somewhat reluctantly, the heavy one nodded.

"Then it's decided." The four prepared to move out.


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: Whoa, a month passed quickly! I really intended to update this sooner, but I kept putting it off and now…ugh. Oh well, here's a chapter for you! Remember to review!!!

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"Hey, hey…" A cruel voice called out from behind Naruto, nearly causing him to stumble as he whirled around. "What do we have here?" A teenage boy with silver hair was speaking, not too far away from Naruto and a few steps in front of three other teens. The three weren't much nicer-looking.

One was considerably larger than the others, both in height and weight. He stared at Naruto with stoic, expressionless eyes that matched the color of his orange hair. His arms were thick with muscles, indicating great physical strength.

The one next to him was rather peculiar looking, with six arms branching out from his two shoulders. His black hair, which only really existed on the top, was pulled back into a ponytail. He peered at Naruto with curious eyes and placed two of his six hands on his hips.

The third teammate of the silver-haired teen was female with dark pink hair jutting out from underneath a tight black cap. Her face might once have been considered pretty, but her eyes were cold and showed nothing but sneering contempt toward Naruto.

"You're not lost, are you?" The silver haired one took a step closer; Naruto instinctively took a step back. The blonde could do nothing but stare at this intimidating figure. As Naruto looked on, he noticed something unusual near the back of the advancing figure's shirt, close to the nape of his neck. It appeared to be some sort of second head, but the first one was terrifying enough, for it stared at Naruto with hungry eyes.

"What's the matter? Can't talk? The six-armed one chimed in, grinning maliciously.

"I-I'm waiting for, erm, Orochimaru-sama…" Naruto cringed as the silver headed one laughed cruelly. He brushed a lock of hair out of his face and smiled.

"Ah, you wish to see Orochimaru-sama? He's a busy man, you know." Glancing at his comrades behind him, he gave another chuckle. "But perhaps we should introduce ourselves for the time being. I'm Sakon, of the Western Gate."

"Jirobou, Southern Gate." The large one spoke in a deep, booming voice.

"Kidoumaru, Eastern Gate." The six-armed teen spoke with a hint of laughter in his voice.

"Tayuya, Northern Gate." The girl spoke last, cracking her knuckles before forming a fist. Naruto winced at the noise.

"I'm Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto shook as he spoke and his voice wavered.

"Oh, Naruto, is it?" Sakon put on a look of mock interest. "Well, now that we're all _friends_, can I ask you something, Naruto?" A shadow covered Sakon's face as he stared at the ground intently.

"Wh-what is it?"

"Naruto…" Sakon's voice was serious and quiet. "Do you bleed a lot?"

"Huh?" Naruto's face contorted with confusion, but before he could say anything more, he felt a leg interlock with his own and a rough hand push him backwards. Sakon had disappeared from his original spot and appeared right in front of Naruto, laughing as he tripped him. But before Naruto could hit the ground, some tremendous force hit him square in the chest.

"**Tarenkyaku! **(Multiple Connecting Kicks)"

Naruto flew several feet through the air before landing roughly started to roll on the hard stone tiles. However, he came to an abrupt halt as a foot stopped him and pushed him until he was lying on his back. It was Kidoumaru.

"Geez, Sakon. That was pretty mean of you." He bent down and extended one of his hands. Naruto gave a weak smile and grabbed it, thinking that he would be helped. But instead, he was roughly pulled to his feet. Naruto's cry of surprise turned to one of pain as Kidoumaru grabbed his hand tightly and began bending it backwards at the wrist. As Naruto struggled to gain control, Kidoumaru laughed and quickly kneed Naruto in the stomach. At the same time, he released his grip on Naruto's hand and allowed the blonde to stagger backwards, clutching his stomach and gasping for breath.

However, Naruto's head darted upwards as he heard a sound off to his left. Jirobou dashed towards him, his meaty right hand formed into a tight fist. Naruto felt a surge of anger rise in him; he formed a fist of his own and swung at his approaching assailant.

"You finally learned to fight back." Jirobou spoke smugly as he caught Naruto's fist with his left hand. With his other, he punched Naruto in the stomach before grabbing him around the neck. Blood dribbled from Naruto's mouth as he struggled to breathe. "But," Jirobou continued to taunt Naruto "You're still a weak piece of trash." Lifting Naruto over his head, he threw the badly beaten Naruto. Naruto's whole body shook with pain as he slammed into one of the arena's walls.

Even though Naruto was barely conscious due to the ferocious assault, he struggled to get to his feet. He felt that if he could just get to his feet, just run to the exit…

"Where do you think you're going, shithead?" Tayuya was standing over him, ignoring Jirobou's disapproving grunt at her swearing. Naruto cringed as he looked up at her. At this, she grinned and put her foot on Naruto's back, pushing him back to the ground.

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Orochimaru was not pleased; his face conveyed this clearly. He, Raiu, and Kabuto were watching the fight, waiting for the first burst of the Kyuubi's chakra. But minutes passed, and Naruto was just doing nothing more but rapidly approaching the brink of death.

"He won't last much longer at this rate." Kabuto adjusted his glasses with his middle and index finger. Raiu nodded, still leaning against the wall behind Orochimaru and Kabuto.

"I could still get there in time and stop this."

"No." Orochimaru's voice was blunt. He said nothing more, but the tone of his voice told Raiu that it would be best for him to be quiet.

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"That piece of shit isn't fun at all. Hmph." Tayuya muttered as she, Sakon, and Kidoumaru stood about idly. Jirobou, however, was bending over a half-dead Naruto, the palm of his hand pressed against Naruto's forehead. Half of his forearm was encased in a light blue aura as Naruto's chakra was drained from his body.

"Completely boring." Kidoumaru agreed and nodded.

"Hey, fatty." Sakon called out to Jirobou. "Hurry up and finish feeding. Maybe we can find some toys that aren't as pathetic as this one." Jirobou grunted in agreement.

Naruto's breathing was labored. Blood loss and head trauma had made his vision extremely fuzzy; it was likely that he had a concussion. However, he was still conscious enough to think sadly to himself.

"_My body…it's heavy…I can't move…" _Naruto's right arm quivered as he tried to lift it, but it did nothing else. _"My strength is being drained away…I'm gonna die…"_ A tear flowed down the side of his face, dispelling a small rivulet of blood on his cheek as it flowed. But at this grim thought, something inside him boiled.

"_Tears?" _Naruto heard a deep voice rumble inside his head. _"You really are weak, kid…"_

"_Who are you?" _The voice was familiar to Naruto, but he was confident he had never heard anything like it before.

"_Who am I?" _There came a chuckle that sounded all too similar to a growl. _"Think of me as a friend…A friend who will give you what even most can only dream of…"_

Naruto didn't answer back.

"_Confused?" _The voice continued. _"Power, kid. Power."_

"_I don't understand." _

"_Power to do anything you want. Power to rip these brats apart. Power to get revenge. Power to become…the greatest ninja that ever lived."_

"_You can do this?" _Naruto felt a tinge of excitement as the final promise echoed in his mind. To be greatest ninja that ever lived…it was still his goal.

"_See for yourself." _The voice laughed and began to fade away. However, in its place, Naruto felt his body becoming warm, as if the blood inside his body was coming to a boil. Mobility was returning to his limbs, but they felt stronger than ever before. Pain from his wounds began to dissipate, only to be replaced by an intense rage.

Jirobou grunted in surprise. Sakon turned to him, annoyed.

"What is it now, fatass? Do you have indigestion or something?" Jirobou shook his head quickly and flinched.

"Something's wrong. Before, his chakra was all but gone. But now…" Jirobou paused and placed both his hands on Naruto's head. "I can barely absorb it all."

"Look." Kidoumaru pointed at Jirobou's arm, his eyes widening with surprise. The aura was changing from the usual blue aura to red. The three members of the Sound Four began to watch in silent surprise as Naruto's body began to be covered in the same glow.

"This guy might be interesting after all." Sakon chuckled to himself. Naruto's eyes, which had been half-shut and near death, opened fully.

His appearance had changed. The soft azure circles were gone, replaced by crimson pooling around black, demonic slits. Naruto clenched his teeth, revealing elongated eyeteeth: fangs. His nails grew at an inhuman rate, forming beast-like claws. Jirobou quickly stopped draining Naruto's chakra. Usually, he enjoyed nothing more then feeling his own strength grow while his opponents slipped into death, but this chakra was too powerful, too vile for him to take in. He released his hold on Naruto and staggered back.

Naruto got to his feet and stared at Jirobou with murderous eyes. There suddenly came a hissing noise; steam was rising from the wounds on Naruto's face – they were healing.

"Wh-what are you?" Jirobou could barely speak. Words escaped Naruto's mouth before he could fully comprehend what he was saying.

"A monster."

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Author's Note: I was originally planning to fit the entire battle into one chapter, but I felt that it would be too long. However, expect a major battle to occur next chapter!


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: Merry Christmas Eve to you all! It seems I was a bit late with this chapter too…I had actually finished a few pages of this within a few days of the last chapter, but writer's block struck and I didn't finish this until a few days ago. It's a bit longer, so I hope that makes it up to you all.

However, as I was writing this, I realized that I've been listing the techniques in Japanese, which makes it very difficult for the moves I've made up on my own. However, using English-Japanese translators along with my meager understanding of Japanese grammar, I've done my best. Although it's really only the English translation that's important, fell free to message me with mistakes I've made.

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Before Jirobou could reply to Naruto's words, Naruto swiftly punched him in the stomach, twisting his fist as he pushed it inward. Jirobou gave an audible grunt, his eyes wide with surprise and pain. Naruto watched his foe's face intently, visibly enjoying the pained expressions. This first assault seemed to last for an eternity; the other members of the Sound Four merely watched, stunned.

But suddenly, the fist withdrew, soon followed by a flurry of punches that could only be perceived by the normal eye as a blur. It was Jirobou's turn to stagger backwards, but even as he stumbled, the relentless assault continued. There was blood now – not just Jirobou's, but from Naruto's hands, which were clenched so hard that his claw-like nails dug into his palm.

The brutal attack finally culminated in a single punch to the face, one that sent Jirobou flying past his comrades. He landed with a thud that echoed through the now-silent arena.

"He's even stronger than Jirobou in terms of physical strength." Kidoumaru commented, alarmed. However, Sakon laughed.

"At least now this morning won't be a total waste." He started to sprint right for Naruto. As he ran, his silver hair moved out of his face, revealing a terrible grin: his interest was piqued. But when Sakon reached a point a few feet away from Naruto's standing form, there came a quick blur of motion from behind him. However, with Sakon so near, Naruto chose to concentrate on the obvious attacker. But then it was too late.

Before Naruto could land could even move to attack, two arms slipped under his from behind him and interlocked its hands at the nape of Naruto's neck, temporarily preventing Naruto's arms from moving.

"I'm sorry about that. It seems I forgot to mention somebody during our previous introduction." Sakon gloated happily after he struck Naruto across the face. The one holding Naruto spoke.

"I'm Ukon…Sakon's twin brother…" Ukon held his face close to Naruto's ear, whispering in a voice deeper and more serious than Sakon's. Suddenly he released Naruto from his grip, but swept Naruto off his feet with a swift kick at his ankles. Coordinating this attack with his brother's, Sakon kicked Naruto's midsection for the split second he was in mid-air. Naruto landed a few feet away.

"There's a reason why we're the strongest of the Sound Four, you know." Sakon said nonchalantly, brushing hair out of his eyes. Naruto growled as he rose to his feet, barely lucid. His eyes were wild, feral.

"Sakon, I want to kill him. Now." Ukon rumbled, speaking to his brother.

"Hm? So soon? He had just gotten fun." Sakon looked at his brother with mock perturbation. "Let me have fun for a little longer, at least." At this, both brothers seemed to share an inaudible agreement. Simultaneously, they started for Naruto at breakneck speed, fists raised.

Naruto reacted with speed and precision that his old self never could have. An instant before the fists made contact, Naruto grabbed forward with both his hands. Clutching the two opposing fists in his hands, he pushed the two together, causing Sakon's and Ukon's bodies to collide as well and stumble.

Naruto leapt over Sakon and Ukon, and landed nimbly behind them. Throwing back his head, he gave a roar. Although it was far from animal-like, it being in Naruto's voice, there was still some deep undertone within it, making it seem loud and savage.

By the time he stopped, the Sound Four had recovered and surrounded him, although they still made sure to keep a safe distance. Jirobou seemed a bit shaky, but he was on firm legs; his eyes stared intently at Naruto. Sakon and Ukon were on their feet as well, more angry than injured. Ukon placed his hands onto his brother's back, and began to merge with his body.

"Kidoumaru, restrain him!" Sakon shouted out. His six-armed companion reacted. His jaw began to move slightly, as if he were chewing something. His cheeks suddenly bulged.

"**_Ninpou: Kumo Shibari! _**(Ninja Art: Spider Bind)"

A spider web, several times larger than anything that could be found in nature, flew from Kidoumaru's mouth, spread out and ready to ensnare. However, with Naruto's continually enhancing abilities, he easily leapt out of way.

"Do you think I'm that easy to escape?" Naruto was in mid-air from the jump, but Kidoumaru had just appeared above him. He had no time to react.

With a ball of spider thread perfectly molded in his hands, Kidoumaru pointed it at Naruto. The sphere instantly unfolded and became a massive spider web, much larger than the previous one.

"**_Ninpou: Kumo Soukai! _**(Ninja Art: Spider Web Unfold)"

Naruto gritted his teeth and snarled – his muscles weren't strong enough e to break through the giant spider web. Kidoumaru laughed.

"Well, that was disappointingly easy. But then again, you just are just a dumb animal, aren't you?" His mouth made chewing motions similar to before and placed all six of his arms near his mouth. He began to pull more spider thread from it, but this thread had an unusual golden color. "**_Ninpou: Kumo Nenkin! _**(Ninja Art: Spider Sticky Gold)"

Biting the stretched gold webbing, it separated into six hook-like pieces. They made a crackling noise as they began to harden. Sharp-looking spines began to grow. However, as they began to harden, Naruto closed his eyes and began to tremble.

"Scared, are we? Pathetic." Tayuya spat. But then her look of contempt changed to one of surprise.

A red aura, similar to before, appeared around Naruto. Like the tongues of a flame, the edges dance and flickered. The began to grow in intensity.

"Kidoumaru, do it now!" Tayuya shouted as Naruto became completely encompassed in the blaze. Kidoumaru threw two of the golden weapons.

But it was too late. In a final flare of pure energy, the web trapping Naruto sizzled and disintegrated into nothingness. Naruto's hands flew together and formed a hand seal.

"**_Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! _**(Shadow Replication Technique)"

Two replications appeared in front of Naruto, just in time to absorb the hits from Kidoumaru's technique. A cloud of gray smoke came with each replication's disappearance, drifting softly.

Suddenly, Naruto leapt through the cloud, causing it to disperse. With tremendous speed, he dashed right for Kidoumaru. Kidoumaru threw his remaining four weapons at Naruto while taking a few tentative steps backwards, completely caught off-guard.

Naruto sidestepped to avoid all four projectiles, but didn't lose a fraction of his speed as he did so. With fully built-up momentum, he shoulder-checked Kidoumaru, knocking the six-armed member of the Sound Four backwards and to the ground. He failed to get up. Naruto turned around and looked at his three remaining foes. His hand formed a familiar hand sign.

"**_Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu! _**(Mass Shadow Replication Technique)"

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Orochimaru smiled wickedly. Raiu and Kabuto, however, were more surprised. Kabuto fumbled with his glasses, which had slipped precariously low on his nose due to his shock.

"There…there are quite a few replications there." Kabuto quickly regained his composure. "It's a valuable technique for him, considering his substantial chakra reserves."

Orochimaru said nothing, but continued to grin. Naruto could now be used.

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"What the Hell?!" Sakon gaped.

There were hundreds. All emanating the same vile aura, hundreds of replications scowled. Jirobou gulped. Everything was still for a brief moment as both sides stared at each other.

But simultaneously, both sides sprung into motion. In a straightforward charge, the Naruto replications burst forward. But the conscious members of the Sound Four were less obvious in their attacks.

"**_Doton: Doryuu Dango! _**(Earth Release: Earth Mausoleum Dumpling)" As his two teammates leapt away from his side, Jirobou buried both his hands in the ground. Exhaling audibly in a roar-like voice, Jirobou lifted a massive chunk of earth and held it above his head, leaving a sizable hole in the ground. Arms shaking from the exertion, he threw the dumpling-shaped mass at the advancing force of Naruto replications. Once it made contact with the ground, the chunk of earth began to roll, crushing and destroying all of the replications that failed to get out of the way in time.

After leaping from Jirobou's side, Sakon landed on a Naruto replication, destroying it as his legs pushed to the ground. He was surrounded now, but was completely calm and eyed the enemies, calculating.

Sakon gave a battle cry and ran straight into a particularly dense grouping of replications. However, as he approached them, the arms and legs of his brother branched from his own limbs and struck out in an unpredictable manner as Sakon ran. From an overhead view, an ever-increasing line of smoke indicated where Sakon and his brother were demonstrating their mastery over hand-to-hand combat.

While Jirobou and Sakon attacked, Tayuya whipped out a simple-looking metal flute. She concentrated her chakra before speaking.

"Get back." Although she spoke softly, Jirobou and Sakon heard her voice over the din of battle. They quickly retreated behind her, although Jirobou made sure to carry an unconscious Kidoumaru with him. Holding the flute to her delicate lips, Tayuya inhaled.

"**_Mateki: Aigou no Chitenma! _**(Demonic Flute: Wailing of 1000 Demons)"

Mixing chakra in with the breath she exhaled, the flute emitted a horrible high-pitched noise. Even though the sound waves of the attack were directed in front of her, Jirobou and Sakon still cringed.

But Naruto received the worst of the attack. Clamping his hands over his ears in a vain attempt to block out the noise, his concentration broke, and the remaining replications vanished in a massive poof of smoke.

Naruto was on his knees now, trembling as the unworldly noise refused to be blocked out. Tayuya smirked as she played the single note on her flute, with no intention of stopping. She had used the technique several times. On weaker opponents, it usually made them pass out and left permanent ear damage. However, on stronger opponents, which Tayuya expected Naruto to be one of, the noise often made them go insane. Of course, all this depended on Tayuya's chakra. Even using that one technique would leave her vulnerable and weak.

But then there was a change.

The red aura, which had diminished severely with Tayuya's attack, exploded with new strength as Naruto gave an agonized roar. And as a spike in the chakra output occurred, the arena shook. The ground around Naruto fragmented into large pieces and flew off into the air in all directions. Tayuya's eyes widened.

"_What the Hell?!" _She started to collect chakra in her feet so that she could quickly bound away from the flying chunks of earth, but it was impossible – there wasn't enough chakra left. But luckily for her, only a particularly large piece landed just in front of her, serving only to knock her backwards. The flute flew from her hands and landed out of her reach. Sakon and Jirobou looked anxiously at their comrade, but she too was unconscious and unable to fight.

Jirobou looked away from Tayuya's body, and to where Naruto had previously stood. But he was gone.

"What?" Jirobou's head darted around, but Naruto had seemingly vanished. "Where-?" He was stopped mid-sentence, as the demonic blonde appeared directly before him, standing completely still, as if he had been there all along.

"_So fast!" _Jirobou could do nothing but stare at red – terrible red eyes. Naruto, being shorter than Jirobou, swung his fist upward, catching him directly under the chin. Jirobou cried out as he flew up several feet before landing with a dull thud. Sakon bit his lower lip. Despite the brutal beating he had received earlier that morning, Jirobou was, by some miracle, still alive. However, he had joined the other two in unconsciousness, leaving Sakon alone.

"You shouldn't play around any longer. At the first sign of trouble, you should have squashed him like a bug." Ukon's head sprouted from his twin brother's shoulder and spoke in a scolding tone.

"I suppose we should activate _it_, eh, Ukon?" Sakon nodded as he muttered. When he had finished speaking, red marks, glowing like lively embers danced across his skin before 'cooling' off and leaving irregular circle-like black marks.

Naruto watched this warily, panting like a wild creature, but did nothing else.

"I'll admit: I was wrong to underestimate you, Naruto – or whatever you have now become." Sakon called out, settling into a fighting pose. "But…it ends now. I didn't want to use my Cursed Seal against weaklings, but it seems you have some strength in you. Prepare for death."

They charged.

Crimson chakra swirled around Naruto's fist as he raised it, gritting his teeth and bearing fox-like fangs. Sakon matched Naruto's speed and raised his own right fist. Two other ones began to branch out from it at the wrist and began to move around rapidly, creating a blur with a single stationary fist at the center. It was an attack many times mightier than an ordinary punch.

"**_Tarenken! _**(Multiple Connecting Punches)"

Hearing nothing but the sounds of their beating hearts and the air whistling around them, the two fighters sprinted, until only a couple feet remained between them. The distance quickly shrunk.

But, in the exact instant before contact would be made, both were thrown off their feet and knocked away.

"You two should really be careful. You could really kill each other, you know?" Kabuto smiled as the dazed Naruto and Sakon scrambled to get to their feet. Raiu was beside him, black hair forming a veil around his face in the usual manner. His head moved, observing the fact that the two were preparing to go at each other once more. He leapt into the air and pulled out a scroll from one of his sleeves.

He was half-way to the high ceiling when she stopped his ascent. Raiu opened the scroll. As he activated the symbols on the parchment, he was surrounded by a cloud of white smoke. His monotone voice spoke quietly, but all in the room could hear his words.

"**_Raiton: Raifuu Kekkai! _**(Lightning Release: Lightning Seal Barrier)" Sixteen kunai flew from the cloud of smoke, eight at Naruto, eight at Sakon. They landed in a perfect circle surrounding both.

At first glance, they may have seemed to be ordinary kunai, but at the end of the weapon where a small ring usually existed, a small metal cube had taken its place, with strange symbols engraved into them. When they all landed, these cubes crackled with sapphire sparks.

Suddenly, a blue dome formed around both Naruto and Sakon, the edges running through the grounded kunai. Sakon saw this barrier and seemed to understand. He sat down and crossed his arms, looking away from the general direction of the action.

However, Naruto, in his feral state, was completely ferocious. Jumping to his feet, he banged both his fists on the dome, obviously angry about being trapped. But the instant that his hands touched the barrier, his body twitched and jerked as visible cerulean electricity ran through his body. After a few seconds, his hands bounced away from the barrier. He fell backwards, eyes closed. Deepened whisker marks, claws, fangs – they all began to fade.

Raiu landed softly. He looked at the senseless Naruto; black strands of hair fell away from his face. Azure eyes stared, watchfully.

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Author's Note: Well, I hope you enjoyed the battle scene; I found it a bit more interesting to write. I've made two original moves:

Mateki: Aigou no Chitenma****(Demonic Flute: Wailing of 1000 Demons)

Raiton: Raifuu Kekkai (Lightning Release: Lightning Seal Barrier)

Raiu's move is a pretty standard entrapment move; its only weakness is that the kunai must be thrown from above in order to make the perfect circle.

Tayuya's move is supposed to be pretty powerful, since only those with strong willpower can move, let alone attack her. However, the drawback is that it requires a massive amount of chakra to keep up, to the point that she can barely move while using it. (That's my little excuse why it was never used against Shikamaru)


	8. Chapter 8

Author's Note: Oh dear. I've neglected this fic for quite some time, haven't I? Well, a thousand apologies about that. For the longest time, I've been unsure of where to go in this fic. I had individual battles planned, but no actual way to get there. Well, with the little twist I provided in this chapter, I've got a better idea.

Also, I would like to thank The Eromancer, (apparently, he's changed his name while I've been gone). He's been a wonderful help by discussing aspects of the Kyuubi with me. Although he has no direct influence on this chapter, his ideas should start appearing soon…

With that said, enjoy this latest chapter!

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"I haven't seen you this pleased in quite some time." Kabuto observed, a faint grin existing on his own face. His master chuckled.

"It's not every day that one gets such a magnificent tool." The two were standing in one of the medical examination rooms, with the unconscious bodies of Jirobou, Kidoumaru, and Tayuya lying on sheet-covered beds nearby. "Just think…" Orochimaru stared down at the pale palms of his hands. They trembled slightly. "The legacy of the Fourth; the boy he waged his entire life upon, is in my hands." Giving a slightly crazed smile, Orochimaru looked back to Kabuto. "But, how are my pets doing?"

"They'll recover – their injuries weren't serious. Jiroubou-san is the worst off, with a few broken ribs and slight internal bleeding. Kidoumaru-san has a mild concussion, and Tayuya-san is suffering from a severe depletion of chakra." Kabuto listed off the injuries objectively and dismissively, seeming somewhat preoccupied. "And Sakon-san and his brother are likely off sulking. Those two aren't used to losing…"

"But something else is bothering you, yes?" Kabuto nodded.

"Naruto-kun was seconds away from achieving the first tail of the Kyuubi. I would have expected that more damage would have been done, considering his condition" He glanced at his unconscious underlings.

"He is still a little soft, granted." Orochimaru nodded knowingly. "It is to be expected. Even with the Kyuubi's help, a shred of humanity and compassion would remain, and restrain him…" He trailed off and shrugged.

"Do you have something planned in particular?" Kabuto asked, recognizing his master's expression: it was a look Orochimaru got whenever a spark of devious inspiration took him.

"Perhaps." Orochimaru turned away; his serpent-like eyes glittered in the dim light. Giving a short laugh, Kabuto pushed up his glasses.

"I suppose it will become obvious soon enough." With a sigh, Kabuto drew a Konoha forehead protector from his pocket. "I'm afraid I must depart for now, Orochimaru-sama. The Konoha Mission Council might become suspicious if I tarry any longer."

Orochimaru nodded, but had already drifted away from his subordinate. He had pulled out several ancient-looking scrolls; his eyes were darting back and forth – reading as fast as he could. Kabuto gave another grin at the familiar scene and headed back to Konoha.

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Slowly, Naruto opened his eyes. His vision was blurred; apparently, he had been asleep for some time.

The room was familiar: the same, sterile walls, bleak-looking bed, dim and faded floors….Naruto sat up and yawned.

"_What happened?" _As if to answer his question, images suddenly flooded into his mind – his eyes went wide. The unconscious bodies of the Sound Four, the pain, the murderous rage boiling inside him…_"Did I really do all of that?_ He shook his head. There was something deep inside of him: could it be true? He shook his head again. The people of Konoha had seemed to despise him, loathe him. Was this why?

"You impressed me today, Naruto-kun." A familiar voice spoke softly, and all feelings of fear and self-doubt began to dispel. Orochimaru stepped from the shadowy doorway into the dimly lit room. Raiu followed behind him, silently.

"Orochimaru-sama!" Naruto practically jumped out of the bed to greet him, his previous discomfort about the day before having vanished. However, as he did so, he stumbled, for his entire body felt weak. In his clumsiness, the boy crashed into Orochimaru, and although the pale man did not budge, he was forced to catch him. A brief, yet intense look of revulsion flashed across his face, but it was quickly replaced by a look of well-feigned amiability.

"Easy now," Orochimaru spoke delicately. "You're still weak." He helped the boy to his feet.

"All of that power places a strain on your body, Naruto-kun." Raiu added quietly, as Naruto crawled back onto the cot and sat, his legs folded.

"I heard about your unpleasant encounter – I've made sure such a misunderstanding won't happen again." Orochimaru patted the boy on the head. "You truly are a magnificent child."

"Thank you." As Naruto answered, a slight glimmer appeared in the corner of one of his eyes. It twinkled as it fell; slipping off the cheek and silently landing amongst the sheets. Naruto wiped his nose and smiled. "Will I able to do training with you now, Orochimaru-sama?"

"Not quite yet." Orochimaru withdrew his hand. "I think it might be best for now if you train with Raiu-kun. He'll teach you basic combat skills, chakra control…Once you learn those skills, we can begin." But at this, Naruto became visibly crestfallen.

"I see…Okay…"

"It's just that you need to master some essential skills; don't be discouraged." Straining himself to maintain the smile, Orochimaru placed Naruto's clothes on the bed and lifted the boy's chin with his hand. "I'll check on you now and then during your training. Continue to make me proud, Naruto-kun." This seemed to cheer Naruto up; despite his weakened legs, the energetic boy practically jumped off the bed.

"Right!" With new life and a determination to succeed in his training, he hurried to slip on his clothes. Orochimaru gave a soft laugh and turned to the door. Quietly, he stepped out of the room and vanished into darkness, his soft footsteps being the only thing that lingered to mark his departure.

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"Hey! Raiu-senpai! Look at me!" Naruto waved his hand excitedly. "I did it! Oops…" As he spoke, his pocket slipped open and an assortment of kunai and shuriken fell out, falling past his head: Naruto was completely upside-down, his feet firmly stuck to the arena ceiling. The weapons made echoing clanging noises as they impacted the ground.

"Very good, Naruto-kun." And Naruto was doing quite well. Only two weeks of training had elapsed, but Naruto had accomplished much. He could throw with decent accuracy at thirty meters, he had drastically improved his speed, and he showed considerable promise in forms of taijutsu and genjutsu. But his latest accomplishment, the mastery of chakra control, was being fully demonstrated with Naruto standing upside-down, some fifty meters above the ground.

"This is pretty easy!" Naruto began to walk around, clearly enjoying himself. However, after a few seconds, as he lifted one foot, the force of gravity proved too strong for the other one to handle. With a startled gasp, he began to fall. "WAAAAAARRRGGH!" Clenching his eyes shut, he started to yell. And continued to yell until he opened one eye and realized that he was in Raiu's arms on the ground.

"It would appear you require a bit more practice, Naruto-kun." Raiu murmured as he helped Naruto to his feet. The boy grinned sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. "But still…you've made considerable progress. I think that's enough for today." Raiu bent down to pick up the weapons Naruto had dropped.

"Thanks Raiu-senpai!" Naruto flashed another grin and started to run for the north exit, not bothering to retrieve the weapons that he had dropped. Raiu watched him leave, staring intently. As soon as Naruto had left, he turned his head and called out.

"You really shouldn't hold a grudge. You'll need to work with him."

"Hmph." From the balcony overlooking the arena, Sakon's form stood alone. The body of his brother's head was silent and still. "That bastard learns a few simple tricks and he thinks he's a real ninja." Suddenly, he vanished from his lofty perch, only to reappear a few feet from Raiu. He gazed at the older teenager with a crazed smirk. "I should just slit his throat while he's sleeping."

"Try it, and I should have to stop you." Sakon snorted his contempt.

"You think so, hmm?" He gave another mocking laugh. "I'd like to see you try – you don't even have a cursed seal."

"You rely on that seal of yours too much, Sakon." Raiu spoke dispassionately, almost as if he was uninterested. "But even with it, I doubt you could put up much of a fight."

"Care to try it, then?" Sakon took a step forward. However, he was suddenly halted - a sudden small burst of wind blew past his face, stirring up a lock of his silver hair. A few strands floated to the ground. His eyes were wide. A soft thud called out from behind him, as a kunai planted itself in the arena wall.

"But whatever the outcome of your attempt on Naruto's life, Orochimaru-sama would not be pleased. He's given you four a lot of room to breathe, but he still would not rank your life above Naruto's." Raiu lowered his throwing arm, which had been raised parallel to the ground. "Unless, of course, you think you could defeat him as well?" Sakon took a step back and brushed the hair out of his face.

"Lighten up. I was just joking around, of course..." He glanced at Raiu, briefly conveying his malice before leaping back up to the balcony and departing.

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Naruto raced through the empty hallways, his footsteps his only companion. He was smiling, glad that he finished the day's training early. Eager to tell Orochimaru of his latest success, he was practically sprinting. He rounded a corner and skidded to a halt before a closed wooden door.

"Oh yeah…He's in a meeting right now, isn't he?" Naruto scratched his head. "I wonder what they're talking about…" He placed his ear against the door and strained to listen. But it was no use – the door was too thick. "Damn." Taking a seat beside the closed door, Naruto decided to wait until the meeting ended. But this intention lasted all of five minutes as Naruto's impatience soon overcame him.

"The conference table is supposed to be at the other end of the room, away from the door." Naruto muttered to himself. "Nobody should notice if I open it a crack…" He slowly reached for the handle.

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"And should the coup prove successful, the Mizukage's secret ninjutsu scrolls will be yours. My master has no particular need for them." Haku bowed his head and sat back down in his chair, having finally finished his proposal. Zabuza was slouched in a chair beside him, his arms folded lazily across his chest. Across the table, Kabuto and Orochimaru were seated as well. The older man appeared to be concentrating heavily on the subject at hand, but Kabuto knew better. It was more likely that Orochimaru was thinking about some new experiment waiting for him at the laboratory. Although it was technically a meeting between Orochimaru and Zabuza, all negotiating was really being done by their underlings.

"I see." Kabuto cleared his throat and gave his typical diplomatic smile. He gave a quick glance in Orochimaru's general direction, noting that the man was, in fact, apathetic about the whole meeting. Kabuto shared the same opinion: after all, even though they couldn't be provided with specifics at that stage of negotiation, the likelihood of a successful conquest over one of the most powerful ninja villages was abysmal. "You say that you require about ninety of our shinobi for this…this plan of yours?"

"Correct." Haku answered.

"I see." Kabuto adjusted his glasses. Ninety was a significant number, especially since a plan to invade Konoha during the Chuunin exams required the bulk of their manpower. "However-" He put on another smile and began to decline.

Suddenly, Haku's arm jerked with movement. And in an instant, it seemed that everybody at the table was prepared for a fight. Kabuto had pulled out a kunai, ready to defend. Seeing that, Zabuza had thrown a hand to the handle of his zanbatou, muscles tensed. And upon observing Zabuza's actions, Orochimaru formed half of a hand seal with one hand, but caught himself in time from forming the other half with the other hand. Behind the pair from the Sound, a thudding noise sounded. Kabuto whirled around.

Naruto was face-down on the ground, a single needle protruding from his neck, his eyes wide open. A few seconds passed, and the tension seemed to die away. However, Orochimaru looked visibly perturbed.

"I really wish you hadn't. He was actually quite a valuable asset to me." He gave an audible exasperated sigh. However, Zabuza stared at the boy's body for a moment before finally speaking, for the first time during the entire meeting.

"The boy isn't dead. He'll wake up in a few hours. He'll hurt like hell all over, but he'll be alive." Withdrawing his hand from his overly-large sword, he returned to a state of nonchalance. Kabuto walked over to Naruto's body and examined it for a few moments. He nodded to Orochimaru.

"Yeah, Naruto-kun's alive. He doesn't have a pulse, but any medic-nin can tell that he's still living. But still…" Kabuto turned to Haku. "To put him in such a state with only one needle?"

"That's Haku's special skill." Zabuza answered for his subordinate. "He can kill with a single needle at any range, under any conditions."

"I see." Kabuto blinked in surprise and returned to his seat.

"However, what the Hell? I thought this meeting would be secure?" Zabuza had withdrawn his hand from his overly large sword, but it was his turn to look perturbed. "I gathered by his sloppiness that a boy like him isn't an assassin, but if this is how you conduct business, it might be best if we leave. Gatou is probably waiting for us."

"I apologize. That boy is quite a handful at times." Kabuto opened his mouth to speak again, in order to finalize the fact that Otogakure would not give aid, but Orochimaru interrupted.

"I just noticed…Haku, was it? You seem familiar." Orochimaru leaned forward, closely examining the teenager for the first time. His eyes glimmered "You belong to the clan holding the Hyouton bloodline limit, correct? No wonder you wish to invade Kirigakure. The things that were done to the various clans there…" He shook his head. Kabuto watched Orochimaru from his peripheral vision. He turned back to Haku, who was sitting quietly.

"_Another toy for you, Orochimaru-sama?"_ Kabuto smiled to himself. Things were certainly getting interesting.

"The boy follows where I lead. The invasion is my ambition." Zabuza answered for Haku once more. Orochimaru tore away his gaze from the boy and smiled at Zabuza.

"I see. Well, I must say, I admire your persistence. After all, I recall hearing about your first attempt at wresting control of the village." Orochimaru brushed a strand of hair out of his face. "I must say, if it wasn't for your stroke of bad luck, it might have succeeded. But I hope that we can expect similar tactical prowess from you in this endeavor?" Kabuto had to stop himself from laughing out loud. He knew perfectly well that Zabuza's first attempt was basically a frontal nightly assault.

"So you mean-?" Raising an eyebrow, Zabuza sat up in his chair.

"Your offer intrigues me. I would be happy to assist you." He stood up and extended a hand. "With our alliance, Kirigakure shall fall."

Zabuza eyed the hand for a few moments. But finally, he stood as well and took the hand. And the two shook, and then began to discuss plans for a later meeting. However, Kabuto looked to Haku. The boy seemed to be content, although perfectly unaware that the eyes of Orochimaru's desire were upon him.

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Author's Note: So there you go! Orochimaru has secret plans for Naruto and Haku – what could they be?

In this chapter, we see Naruto's influence on the chain of events. If it wasn't for his sneaking in on the meeting, Haku would never have reacted, Orochimaru wouldn't have noticed Haku's special abilities, and an alliance between Zabuza and the Sound would never have been reached, thus leading to the story you're all familiar with. I hope I made everything believable…

Well, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! I can promise that it won't take three months for the next one to appear…Remember; reviews let me know people are reading!

Later.


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